Table tennis game with sloping peripheral boundary

ABSTRACT

A game device for use with a ball and paddles comprising a game board having a playing surface having a recessed central portion and upstanding side portions adjacent to the periphery of said recessed portion. The upstanding side portions have a triangular cross section and are sloped downwardly and inwardly toward the playing surface. A layer of felt material is secured to the playing surface for providing a degree of friction to a ball bounced thereagainst and for reducing the coefficient of restitution of the surface in a specific embodiment.

United States Patent .1191

Simpson 1 June 12, 1973 r [22] Filed:

[ TABLE TENNIS GAME WITH SLOPING PERIPHERAL BOUNDARY [76] Inventor:Warren 0. Simpson, 1276 Chalmero [52] U.S. C1. 273/30 [51] Int. Cl A63b39/00 [58] Field of Search 273/30, 87 R, 87 A,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,580,616 1/1952 Spiegel273/94 R 1,553,682 9/1925 Proud et a1. 273/30 2,275,179 3/1942 Heil273/30 2,115,115 4/1938 Matterson et al 273/30 X 2,926,914 3/1960 Miller273/95 R 1,276,015 8/1918 Belknap 273/30 1,125,459 1/1915 Burrowes273/87 B FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 451,837 1949 Italy 273/30Primary Examiner-Richard C. Pinkham Assistant ExaminerTheatrice BrownAttorney-Good, Gust, Irish & L'undy [57] ABSTRACT A game device for usewith a ball and paddles comprising a game board having a playing surfacehaving a recessed central portion and upstanding side portions adjacentto the periphery of said recessed portion. The upstanding side portionshave a triangular cross section and are sloped downwardly and inwardlytoward the playing surface. A layer of felt material is secured to theplaying surface for providing a degree of friction to a ball bouncedthereagainst and for reducing the coefficient of restitution of thesurface in a specific embodiment.

6 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures PATENTEB JUN 21975 3.738.653 MEI 1 G 4INVENTOR WARREN O. SIMPSON X/WQM,M.Z

ATTORNEYS mimmw 3.738.653

IN'VENTOR WARREN O. SIMPSON ATTOR-N EYS PATENTED 3.7381653 SHEEI 3 0f 4I56 3 :EJLEP... 5

INVENTOR WARREN O. SIMPSON @856 B Y MQM,M w,

ATTORNEYS PAIENIEU Jun 1 2 ma SHEEI l Uf 4 INVENTOR WARREN o. SIMPSON BYWad M, M v

ATTORNEYS TABLE TENNIS GAME WITHSLOPING PERIPHERAL BOUNDARY BACKGROUNDOF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relatesgenerally to a game device and more particularly to the provision of agame board to be used with a ball and paddles wherein a ball is bouncedback and forth upon the game board by a plurality of players.

2. Description of the Prior Art Prior art game devices used in playingthe popular indoor game of ping-pong are well known and widely used.Typical game boards used for playing thissport comprise a tableapproximately feet by 9 feet having a hard, flat playing surface. Inplaying this sport, a small, resilient ball is bounced back and forthupon the playing surface, and due to the shape and hardness of the gameboard and the resilience of the ball, a reasonably uninhibited game ofping-pong requires an unob structed playing area of approximately 14feet by 23 feet. Since many modern homes are constructed without extraspace, such a large, open area. is frequently unavailable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention comprises a game boardfor use with a ball and paddles having a recessed portion andupstanding, sloped walls adjacent to the perimeter of the recessedportion. The playing surface of the game board can be covered withresilient material which increases the coefficient of friction betweenthe ball and the surface of the game board, this material also servingto reduce the coefficient of restitution of the surface. Further, anobstacle such as a net can be positioned transversely across the surfaceof the game board midway between the ends thereof. The game can beplayed with conventional ping-pong paddles and a ping-pong ball.However, the unique characteristics of this game table produced by thesloped wall portions and the resilient material covering the surface maybe further enhanced by using in place of the conventional ping-pong balla slightly larger, less resilient plastic ball with a plurality of holesin its surface, typically a ball of the type commonly used as a practicegolf ball. In addition, a modified ping-pong paddle or bat, havingreduced dimensions and the end thereof opposite the handle portiontruncated, can be used in place of a standard ping-pong bat. Thismodified bat is easier to maneuver and by reason of having one endthereof cut off, a player is less likely to hit the upstanding wallportions of the table-with the end of the bat.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an improved gamedevicefor use with a ball and paddles which can be used for playing agame similar to ping-pong but which can be played within a reducedspace.

It is another object of the invention to provide a game device for usewith a ball and paddles in which the ricochet of the ball is lesspredictable.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a game devicewhich can be used in an indoor sport which requires skill to play andwhich provides enjoyment to the players.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The above-mentioned and other featuresand objects of this invention and the manner of attaining them willbecome more apparent and the invention itself will be best understood byreference to the following description of an embodiment of the'invention taken in con- 5 junction with the accompanying drawings,wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of the game device;

FIG. 2 is a top plan viewof the game device;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken substantially along section line 3-3 ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a modified paddle or bat for use with the gamedevice;

FIG. 5 is a top perspective view of a section of the game device partlybroken away and sectioned for the purpose of illustration;

FIG. 6 is a partial sectional view taken substantially along line 66 ofFIG. 5 showing; details of the structure of the upstanding wallportionsgand FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a net-supporting bracketshowing details of its structure.

DESCRIPTION OF A SPECIFIC EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawings,wherein like numerals refer to corresponding parts, there will be'seen agame device comprising generally a rectangular game board 1 havingopposite end portions 2 and 3. End portion 2 includes a planar recessedportion 4 with sides 6 and 8, ends 10 and 12 and an imaginarylongitudinal center line 14. This recessed portion 4 is preferablyformed from a single piece of k inch thick plywood and has approximatelength and width dimensions of 40 inches.

An upstanding, sloped wall 15 having ends 16 and 18 is secured to theend 10 of the recessed portion 4. As can be seen in FIG. 6, wall 15 hasa right triangular cross-section with sides 20, 22 and 24, This wall 15is preferably cut from a solid piece of wood with the side 24 having aheight of approximately 2 inches and a length essentially equal to thewidth dimension of the recessed portion 4. The ends 16 and 18 of thewall 15 are mitered as shown. The wall 15 is secured to the uppersurface of the end 10 with side 24 in a plane which includes thestraight edge 26 of portion 4 and such that it is bisected by centerline 14. The wall 15 is secured in this position with any suitable woodbinding glue as shown in FIG. 6 and wood screws 28.

Secured to the side 6 of the recessed portion 4 is a sloped wall 32 likewall 15 positioned on the upper surface of the side 6 of flat portion 4with its end 34 contiguous to the end 16 of wall 15 and its verticalside 38 in a plane which includes the edge 40 of the flat portion 4. Theends 34 and 16 meet to form a smooth miter joint 36. The wall 32 extendsto a point 2 inches short of end 12. This wall 32 is secured in positionwith glue and wood screws in a manner similar to wall 15. i

A sloped wall 42 like wall 32 is secured in the same manner onto theupper surface of edge portion 8 such that its vertical side 44 lies in aplane which includes the edge 48 of flat portion 4. It extends to afolded position, as shown, for use. The recessed portion 4 and thesloped sides of walls 14, 32, 42, 50, 52 and 54 are covered with pooltable grade felt 55 secured with a suitable rubber cement. The feltprovides a coefficient of friction for a ball striking the surface thatis greater than the coefficient of friction presented by a bare or apainted wood surface. Further, felt has a lower coefficient ofrestitution than woodand as a consequence, the rebound of a ball when itstrikes the surface is reduced.

Two identical net supporting brackets 68 and 69 are clamped to sides 6and 8 of the recessed portion of the game board 4. As can be seen indetail in FIG. 7, each 1 of the supporting brackets 68, 69 has a Cshaped clamp 70 which is provided with a thumb screw 72 fitted intothreaded hole 74. Secured to-the top of the thumb screw 72 is a clampingpad76. Secured to the clamp 70 is a net supporting member 82 withvertically upstanding portion 84. A pair of tensioning members 86 eachhave a threaded end 88 and a hooked end 94. The threaded ends 88 of thetensioning members 86 pass through the support member 84 in verticallyspaced-apart relation and are fitted with wing nuts 92.

' supporting brackets 68 and 69 support a net which extends transverselybetween the sides 6 and 8 of the flat portion 4 of the game board,forming an obstacle between the opposite end portions 2 and 3 of thegame board 1. The tension of the net can be adjusted by tightening orloosening respective wing nuts 92.

Conventional folding leg assemblies, indicated generally by 106, 107,108, 109 are secured to the underside 111 of the game board 1 at corners110, 112, 114 and 116. The structure of such leg assemblies is wellknown and does not require further description.

The game board as described can be used with conventional ping-pong batsand ping-pong balls. Due to the combination of the planar recessedportion and the sloped walls, the direction of rebound of the ball isless predictable than in conventional ping-pong and considerable agilityis required on the part of a player to return the ball when it is hittowards him.

As a result of the reduced coefficient of restitution of the playingsurface, the ricochet of a ping-pong ball off the surface issignificantly reduced, reducing the amount of space required for playingthe game. It has been found that the game can be played comfortably inan area approximately 9 feet by l4 feet.

The increased friction between the game board surface and the ping-pongball increases the reaction of the ball due to its spin or English, andconsequently greater agility is required by a player to return a ballwhich has been hit towards him.

Both the reduced rebound of the ball and the increased reaction of theball due to spin can further be amplified by using a hollow plastic ballwith a plurality of holes in its walls, such as a practice golf ball, inplace of a standard ping-pong ball, since such a ball has a smallercoefficient of restitution than a conventional ping-pong ball, andfurther increases the friction between the ball and the playing surface.

Enjoyment of the game can be further enhanced when the conventionalping-pong paddle is replaced with a paddle shown in FIG. 4. This paddlecomprises generally a wide, flattened striking portion 132 having ends134 and 136. End 134 of the striking portion is truncated and a standardhand grip 138 is rigidly se cured to the opposite end 136. The hittingportion is approximately 6 inches long along its longest axis and 5 V;inches wide along its shortest axis. This paddle is otherwiseconstructed in a manner similar to conventional ping-pong paddleswherein it has a V4 inch thick plywood center with a 54; inch thick softcellular rubber covering cemented to both sides of the hitting surface.

Since a player has a natural tendency to gauge his movements from thesurface of the table, due to the upstanding walls he is prone to strikethe walls with the ends of a standard ping-pong paddle. Since the end ofthe modified paddle is truncated, this problem is significantly reduced.Further, the overall dimensions of the paddle are smaller than those ofa conventional pingpong paddle, and a player is therefore able tomaneuver the paddle more quickly, thereby improving his ability toreturn a ball which is hit toward him.

Typical dimensions for a working embodiment are:

Recessed portion inches long X 40 inches wid X h inch thick,

Sloped walls 2 inches high,

Height from floor 28% inches.

The sloped walls 15, 32 are preferably disposed at an angle of 30,however, this angle may be varied between 15 and 45 with satisfactoryresults, providing a range of l35 to 165 for the obtuse angle formedwith the planar surface 10. Thus, for a 40 inch wide planar surface 4, a15 slope will provide a transverse dimension of the playing surface ofabout forty percent (40 percent) sloped and 60 percent planar, while a45 slope will provide about 10 percent sloped and percent planar.

The playing surface is continuous and smooth and includes the planarportions 2 and 3 as well as the periph-' eral sloped portions 15, 32.Since this playing surface causes a ball impinged thereagainst torebound, it is referred to as being hard, even though it may have acovering of the aforesaid felt thereon.

While there have been described above the principles of this inventionin connection with specific apparatus, it is to be clearly understoodthat this description is made only by way of example and not as alimitation to the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A table tennis game device including a ball and paddles, a game boardhaving a continuous, hard and smooth playing surface; said playingsurface including a rectangular horizontal flat planar surface portionand a peripheral sloped surface portion essentially bounding said planarportion, said sloped portion having upwardly facing flat surfaces whichintersect said planar portion and extend upwardly and outwardly at anobtuse angle therefrom, and an upstanding barrier net secured to saidgame board midway between the ends and extending transversely thereof.

2. The game device of claim 1 further comprising a cover of resilientmaterial secured to said playing surface for increasing the coefficientof friction between dimension of said playing surface is in the ratio ofabout 10 percent sloped and 90 percent planar to about 40 percent slopedand 60 percent planar.

6. The game device of claim 1 wherein the obtuse angle is about 150 withthe transverse playing surface dimension being about percent sloped and80 percent planar.

1. A table tennis game device including a ball and paddles, a game boardhaving a continuous, hard and smooth playing surface; said playingsurface including a rectangular horizontal flat planar surface portionand a peripheral sloped surface portion essentially bounding said planarportion, said sloped portion having upwardly facing flat surfaces whichintersect said planar portion and extend upwardly and outwardly at anobtuse angle therefrom, and an upstanding barrier net secured to saidgame board midway between the ends and extending transversely thereof.2. The game device of claim 1 further comprising a cover of resilientmaterial secured to said playing surface for increasing the coefficientof friction between said surface and a ball and reducing the coefficientof restitution of said playing surface.
 3. The game device of claim 2wherein said material is felt.
 4. The game device of claim 1 whereinsaid obtuse angle is about 135* to 165* and said peripheral surfaceportion includes a plurality of miter joints disposed at the respectivecorners of said planar surface.
 5. The game device of claim 4 whereinthe transverse dimension of said playing surface is in the ratio ofabout 10 percent sloped and 90 percent planar to about 40 percent slopedand 60 percent planar.
 6. The game device of claim 1 wherein the obtuseangle is about 150* with the transverse playing surface dimension beingabout 20 percent sloped and 80 percent planar.